Forcing me to become a concubine? Remarrying the Ninth Prince, she'll be pregnant all over the

"Just as I expected!" Yong'an was overjoyed, and exchanged a glance with Lin Wantang with a charming smile.

Lin Wantang couldn't help but smile, but gestured for Yong'an to keep his voice down so as not to give others something to talk about.

"And another thing, Princess, His Majesty ordered Eunuch Hua to administer the punishment, and the Crown Prince was sentenced to eighty strokes of the cane. This... this is far too severe. If he truly intended to strike him, then he was aiming for his life. Even if the Crown Prince doesn't die, he will be severely injured and crippled!"

"Many people pleaded for the Crown Prince back then, but the Emperor refused to intervene this time, saying... 'If he's beaten to death, he's beaten to death. He deserves it. This... this wretched child doesn't deserve to die...'"

The maidservant dared to imitate her, but her voice was so weak it was almost unusable.

Yong'an felt a great sense of relief and clapped and cheered, only to be silenced after Lin Wantang gave him a glare.

"Now the Crown Prince is probably going to... lose power. The Emperor is also too disheartened by him. Before the sealing ceremony, the Emperor issued an edict ordering the Fifth Prince and the Sixth Prince to build new palaces. He also appointed two ministers, Zhao Yuande and Wang Hong, to assist and educate them. In addition, the Fifth Prince's mother, Consort Sun, was also promoted to... Consort Lan."

The maid reported back in detail.

Yong'an, no longer gloating, asked the maid, "Is there anything else?"

"And then there is the punishment for the Crown Prince. He is ordered to be flogged and recuperate, and then go to the Imperial Ancestral Temple to pray and kneel in solitude. He shall not return to the palace unless summoned."

Yong'an nodded and waved for the maid to go and collect the reward.

Then, Yong'an looked at Lin Wantang and said, "Sister, it seems that the Crown Prince is going to be abandoned. He is just one imperial edict away from being deposed. But even if the edict is not issued, the Emperor already intends to depose him. He has already been supporting and nurturing the two youngest princes."

Lin Wantang nodded slightly: "More or less, but with Her Majesty the Empress around, I'm afraid it's like... a wildfire that can't be extinguished, a spring breeze that brings it back to life."

The Empress only has one son, Shen Huai'an, and she has high hopes for him. How could she just stand by and watch him lose power and be deposed? Besides, the Empress's father and brothers are all high-ranking officials of the first rank in the court. The Emperor has to think twice about it.

Lin Wantang leaned against the sedan chair wall, her eyes lowered in a deep gaze, her mind racing with scheming thoughts.

Meanwhile, outside the Hall of Mental Cultivation, Wei Wujiu comforted and persuaded the officials to kneel and leave, as he also needed to help the Sixth Prince come here to attend to his illness.

The sixth prince was only six years old, and because of the emperor's neglect, he was not close to his father at all. After leaving the palace, he went straight to Wei Wujiu, buried his head in his arms, and whispered, "It stinks. It smells so bad inside. It's so pungent."

"Your Highness, please be careful with your words."

Upon hearing Wei Wujiu's words, he also took the opportunity to soothe the Sixth Prince by gently patting his head.

The Sixth Prince knew that Wei Wujiu always thought of him and did things for his own good. Otherwise, in the past few years, without his mother, he would have been all alone in the deep palace, constantly being harassed and neglected. Even the servants dared to bully him. Fortunately, he had Wei Wujiu to support him.

"Master, Father Emperor has pushed Zhao Yuande onto me. He told me to behave myself and make something of myself. What does this mean? Does he... want me to compete for the throne?"

Wei Wujiu frowned, put down the sixth prince he was holding, and leaned down to support the sixth prince's shoulders: "You must never say such things again. Don't forget your master's advice to be careful with your words and actions."

"oh."

The sixth prince responded sullenly, but looked at him expectantly: "Master... they all say that my mother was a princess of the previous dynasty, so my father... isn't that incestuous...?"

Wei Wujiu's brows furrowed even more, and a deep malice flashed in his eyes, but it quickly faded away. He also stood up and signaled Ye Ying to lead his servants away.

Once everyone was completely out of sight, he squatted down, but before he could speak, the Sixth Prince said, "Then... I really am a wicked child. I... I don't want to fight for the throne and become emperor. Master, please help me. I just want to... be a carefree prince with no worries about food and clothing. I don't have the skills to do anything practical. Can you please not force me into this?"

The sixth prince didn't understand what the emperor meant, why he had been neglecting him and ignoring him, and why he was suddenly being asked to build a new palace for him and be helped by an old minister like Zhao Yuande. The thought that he might be dragged into the struggle for the throne, or even be pushed to a high position, filled him with panic and fear.

Wei Wujiu sighed helplessly, looking at the crying little prince, but couldn't bring himself to scold him, so he said, "We'll talk about the future later, why think so much? You're still young."

Even if we take a ten-millionth step back, the land of Dai Viet should not be ruled by such a young child.

Because... the direct line of the previous dynasty was never broken.

Wei Wujiu's eyes, concealing their sharpness, were inscrutable. As he slowly rose, his shadowy gaze fell upon the Hall of Mental Cultivation, like a tiger lying in wait, having bided its time for many years, and now the time was almost here.

Night Hawk led the Sixth Prince to the side hall. Wei Wujiu had to wait for the imperial physician to confirm that the emperor's condition had improved before he could leave. He strolled around slowly nearby, and soon saw Hua Twenty-Three stride out of the hall.

"His Majesty's health has improved, so Your Highnesses can rest assured. The princes are well taken care of. Your Highnesses may now return to your palaces."

Hua Ershisan informed the waiting crowd and answered the questions from the concubines one by one. After seeing them off, he took a closer look at Consort Xiaoyu as she left, his gaze somewhat complicated.

Once everyone else was out of sight, Hua Niansan moved closer to Wei Wujiu and said in a low voice, "Your Majesty, something terrible has happened. Your right leg is broken. Imperial Physician Liu just set the bone, but..."

Hua Ershisan pointed to his chest and abdomen, shook his head slightly and said, "These are all ailments, caused by overwork. Now I'm just hoping that Daoist Qingchenzi can enter the palace as soon as possible."

Otherwise, it will drag on for days, until the disease becomes incurable, the mountain collapses, and the court is completely overthrown.

Hua Ershisan's cautious expression grew more serious, and he lowered his voice even further: "How are the plans going? Now there's no need to fight for the throne. We just need to keep an eye on Shen Huai'an. And coincidentally, his temperament has changed drastically. He suddenly killed his concubine out of the blue. When I went to carry out the caning, his expression was like that of someone who had gone mad. Tsk tsk."

Then, Hua Niansan hesitated for a moment, then quickly asked, "Did you do something?"

Wei Wujiu shook his head slightly, while Hua Niansan became even more suspicious: "That's strange! The emperor also suspected that Shen Huai'an was instigated or assassinated. He even asked Physician Liu how Shen Huai'an's treatment was going after he woke up. That means he was repeatedly confirming whether Shen Huai'an had been poisoned."

"But let alone Judge Liu, more than a dozen imperial physicians in the entire Imperial Hospital have checked Shen Huai'an's pulse, and everything is normal. He just suddenly went mad. Even though he is now lucid, the Emperor still dislikes him."

After saying all this, Hua Niansan felt something was amiss: "Could it be that besides us, there's someone else... secretly trying to harm Shen Huai'an? Who could this person be? Although they helped us this time, this person..."

Whether they are friend or foe, how can Hua Ershisan feel at ease without finding out clearly?

"This person..." Wei Wujiu narrowed his eyes and his expression darkened. With a soft chuckle, he said, "I should know who this person is."